Tuesday, 27 September 2011

Nokia Corp. (NOK-N5.630.162.93%) says it has begun shipments of its top N9 smartphone model, ahead of the Windows Phone 7 launch expected later this year.

The cellphone maker said Tuesday the N9, based on the MeeGo open platform, has free navigation and voice-guided maps, storage ranging from 16GB to 64GB and a swipe feature to return to the home screen. It is priced at $650-$750 U.S.

After the N9, Nokia has said it will use the Windows Phone operating system as its main platform — hoping to regain momentum against stiff competition, especially from Apple Inc. and Research in Motion.

Nokia stock was up almost 4 per cent at 4.11 euros ($5.55) in afternoon trading in Helsinki.